News

Zetar chief executive Ian Blackburn spent more than £100,000 on shares in the snack foods company yesterday after a mixed trading update.

He bought 30,000 shares at 348p a share through his self investment pension plan (SIPP) and 4,300 shares for 330p each, paying a total of £118,590.

The purchases bring his stake in Zetar, where confectionery arm Kinnerton makes character-based products such as Winnie the Pooh lollipops and Barbie candy lipstick, to 371,600 shares, or around 3.23%.

Zetar said yesterday that operating profits for the current financial year are unlikely to show any improvement on last year's figures.

The group said that sales in its confectionery division, which includes Kinnerton, in the year to 30 April 2008 are expected to be up 11% to £68m from £61m a year earlier.

Easter arriving earlier than usual compressed confectionery sales into a shorter selling period and caused the cancellation of some late "white label" orders, but the group still expects this division's operating profit for the full year to be ahead of last year.

Kinnerton acquired Irish luxury chocolates manufacturer Lir in December last year. As well as Kinnerton, Zetar has a natural and premium snacks division comprising dried fruits specialist Readifoods and Humdinger.
Top Director Buys

Amec (AMEC)
Director name: Mr Samir Briko
Amount purchased: 50,000 @ 742.00p
Value: £371,000

Zetar (ZTR)
Director name: Mr Ian Blackburn
Amount purchased: 30,000 @ 348.00p
Value: £104,400

Aberforth Geared Cap & Inc Tst Plc (AFHC)
Director name: Mr A J Ritchie
Amount purchased: 22,500 @ 410.00p
Value: £92,250

Symphony International Holdings (SIHL)
Director name: Mr Anil Thadani
Amount purchased: 100,000 @ $0.80
Value: $80,000

Macau Property Opportunities Fund (MPO)
Director name: Mr Thomas W Ashworth
Amount purchased: 50,000 @ 105.00p
Value: £52,500

Monks Investment Trust (MNKS)
Director name: Mr Douglas McDougall
Amount purchased: 7,500 @ 351.30p
Value: £26,348

Brammer (BRAM)
Director name: Mr Ian Fraser
Amount purchased: 6,084 @ 263.00p
Value: £16,001

Brammer (BRAM)
Director name: Mr Ian Fraser
Amount purchased: 5,739 @ 263.00p
Value: £15,094

Zetar (ZTR)
Director name: Mr Ian Blackburn
Amount purchased: 4,300 @ 330.00p
Value: £14,190

Sagentia Group AG (SGA)
Director name: Mr Martin Forster
Amount purchased: 300,000 @ 3.80p
Value: £11,400
Top Director Sells
Xstrata (XTA)
Director name: Mr Santiago Zaldumide
Amount sold: 105,982 @ 4,056.00p
Value: £4,298,630

Balfour Beatty (BBY)
Director name: Mr Peter J L Zinkin
Amount sold: 61,485 @ 461.40p
Value: £283,692

First Calgary Petroleums (FPL)
Director name: Mr Darryl Raymaker
Amount sold: 41,000 @ 137.55p
Value: £56,396

Wynnstay Group (WYN)
Director name: Mr Bernard B Harris
Amount sold: 41,000 @ 260.00p
Value: £106,600

First Calgary Petroleums (FPL)
Director name: Mr Darryl Raymaker
Amount sold: 31,000 @ 147.48p
Value: £45,719

First Calgary Petroleums (FPL)
Director name: Mr Darryl Raymaker
Amount sold: 28,000 @ 140.69p
Value: £39,393

Aberforth Geared Cap & Inc Tst Plc (AFHC)
Director name: Mr A J Ritchie
Amount sold: 10,000 @ 410.00p
Value: £41,000

Wynnstay Group (WYN)
Director name: Mr Roger G Griffiths
Amount sold: 11,000 @ 260.00p
Value: £28,600

Wynnstay Group (WYN)
Director name: Mr J Melvyn Jones
Amount sold: 11,000 @ 260.00p
Value: £28,600